Battle of Ali Masjid (1672)

Battle of Ali Masjid
Part of the Mughal–Afghan Wars
Date April 1672 Location Ali Masjid, Khyber Pass (present-day Pakistan) Result Afghan tribes victory
Belligerents
Pashtun tribes • Afridi • Mohmand • Shinwari	Mughal Empire
Commanders and leaders
Aimal Khan Mohmand Darya Khan Afridi	Muhammad Amin Khushal Khan Khattak
Strength
10,000–20,000	40,000 cavalry 200,000 infantry Total: 240,000 [1]
Casualties and losses
Minor	40,000+ killed 20,000+ captured

In April 1672, the Afghan leader Aimal Khan Mohmand, supported by Darya Khan Afridi, declared war against the Mughal Empire. ^{[2] [3]} The Mughal governor of Kabul, Muhammad Amin, along side Khushal Khan Khattak was attacked by the tribal Pashtuns. ^{[4] [5]} Although he was accompanied by a large Mughal force, he was decisively defeated by the Pashtun tribesmen. ^{[6] [7]} More than 40,000 Mughal soldiers were killed and over 20,000 were taken prisoner. ^{[8] [9]}

Aftermath

Hundreds of Mughal officers were killed, and the governor of Kabul retreated to Peshawar with only a small number of survivors. ^[10] The daughter, sister and mother of Muhammad Amin were taken as prisoners, but his wife committed suicide. ^[5] Khushal Khan was still confused if he should be on the side with the Afghans or the Mughals, but would later join the Afghan rebellion in 1673. ^[5]

References

1. "Storia do Mogor; or, Mogul India 1653–1708". 1907.
2. Edwardes, Stephen Meredyth; Garrett, Herbert Leonard Offley (1995). Mughal Rule in India. Atlantic Publishers & Dist. p. 111. ISBN   978-81-7156-551-1.
3. Khan, Mohammad Nawaz (2004). Khyber: The Treasure Land of History. p. 28.
4. Sandhu, Gurcharn Singh (2003). A Military History of Medieval India. Vision Books. p. 627. ISBN   978-81-7094-525-3.
5. Shahbaz Khan & Himayatullah (2020). Understanding the anti Mughal. p. 71.
6. Sinha, Narendra Krishna; Banerjee, Anil Chandra (1958). History of India. A. Mukherjee. p. 412.
7. Rashid, Haroon (2002). History of the Pathans: The Sarabani Pathans. Haroon Rashid. p. 437.
8. The Indian Historical Quarterly. Ramanand Vidya Bhawan. 1985. p. 496.
9. Agrawal, Ashvini (1983). Studies in Mughal History. Motilal Banarsidass Publ. p. 188. ISBN   978-81-208-2326-6.
10. Ahmad, Laiq (1976). The Prime Ministers of Aurangzeb. Chugh Publications. p. 105.